November 2018 General Elections Results

November 2018 General Elections Results

Tuesday’s big 2018 Midterm election is in the history books and it was quite a historic night indeed! Here in Oregon, it was a phenomenal night for the candidates and ballot measures APANO endorsed — as we swept our entire Endorsement Slate! All 7 candidate races and all 7 ballot measure initiatives (4 statewide, 3 local Portland Metro Area) swung our way, and history was made in several races! Congratulations to the voters in Oregon who defended progressive values and advanced key priorities for our state.

Direct democracy Ballot Measures, the “4th branch of government”, worked out overwhelmingly for Oregonians looking to make our state more welcoming, equitable, and a great place to live. Measures 103, 104, 105, and 106 were soundly defeated by large majorities (60% or more)– preserving our anti-racial profiling law and solidifying abortion rights in the state.

Voters in Portland, and across Oregon rejected big business arguments for special treatments and voted to pass Measure 102and the Metro Housing Bond, to fund important housing projects that our region sorely needs. Voters in Portland also made history by overwhelmingly passing, with 67% voting in favor of a first-in-the-nation Portland Clean Energy Initiativeto force the largest corporations and polluters in our city to invest in local, clean energy economy to serve communities of color most impacted by climate change. Portland also passed the “Honest Elections” campaign finance reform with 88% support, signaling that voters are tired of spendy, negative campaigns.

In Portland, APANO helped see through Jo Ann Hardestyto her election as Portland City Council Position #3 with 61% of the vote. With her victory, Portland has elected its first woman of color to the City government and adds a progressive voice from East Portland to the council chambers. Portland now has a majority woman council (3 out of 5).

At the Statewide level, Governor Kate Brown— a champion for progressive causes — was re-elected to a second and final 4-year term (ending in 2022). She will oversee state government and has put forth campaign finance reform, revenue for K-12 public education, climate action, gun safety and paid family & medical leave as some of her top priorities to pass in the 2019 legislative session.

The Oregon State Legislature will also continue to see strong progressive women of color leading the way for Oregon. Rep. Teresa Alonso León (HD 22 – Woodburn) was re-elected with 59% of the vote and Rep. Janelle Bynum (HD 51 – Happy Valley) was also re-elected in a hard fought race, winning 54% of the vote. Newcomer Rachel Prusak (HD 37 – West Linn), a Nurse Practitioner, defeated an incumbent legislator with 52.5% of the vote and will be sworn into the legislature in January. Sen. Rob Wagner (SD 17 — Lake Oswego) was also re-elected with 65% of the vote, and our APANO home district Rep. Alissa Keny-Guyerwas re-elected, ensuring key progressive allies in Salem.

In a late success, Daniel Nguyen, a restaurant businessman and APANO member (and occasional caterer for APANO) made history — becoming the first AAPI elected to the Lake Oswego City Council. He will become, by our count, only the sixth AAPI elected in the state of Oregon. Councilor-elect Daniel Nguyen was the top vote-getter in Lake Oswego and will begin his service in January 2019.

APANO’s work this cycle broke ground and set records. We are proud of the work we did this cycle, alongside the largest, multiracial, multi-issue coalitions that the state has ever seen. The work continues, as we continue to bring more people in our AAPI community — particularly those who are too often left behind –into our civic life, into our political process.

Every door YOU helped knock on and every phone call YOU helped make brought us closer and closer to our goals of building Asian and Pacific Islander power in Oregon. This was APANO’s first General Election effort as a 501c4 political entity, and we continue to learn more each election cycle. We would love for you to get involved in our c4 political work for the upcoming May 2019 Special Elections to fill out local School Board positions! If you are interested in getting involved, please contact Robin Ye, APANO’s Lead Political Organizer, at [email protected]. Thanks as always for your support!